Political Division Multipliers
President Bush’s margin last year over Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, 2.4 percentage points, was the smallest of any victorious presidential incumbent in history. He won a very close election. But in most of the country, the 2004 race wasn’t even close to being close. A Pew Research Center analysis shows that in the majority […]
The Dean Activists: Their Profile and Prospects
Introduction Although former Vermont governor Howard Dean failed to win the Democratic presidential nomination, his campaign left a strong imprint on the political world. It assembled a network of over a half-million active supporters and contributors, raised over $20 million in mostly small donations online, and demonstrated the power of the internet as a networking […]
Public Opinion Little Changed by Presidential Election
Summary of Findings Six weeks after President Bush’s victory, the divisions that were so apparent in the election show no signs of narrowing. The public remains split over the president’s job performance, the situation in Iraq, and the state of the national economy. But Bush voters are upbeat on all three questions 92% approve […]
Religion and the Presidential Vote
Bush’s Gains Broad-Based
Pre-Election Polls Largely Accurate
Lessons From Campaign ’04
Voters Liked Campaign 2004, But Too Much ’Mud-Slinging’
Summary of Findings Campaign 2004 receives generally favorable marks from the voters. An overwhelming 86% say they learned enough about the candidates to make an informed choice, while two-thirds express satisfaction with the choice of candidates. However, voters also believe this campaign was more negative than previous contests 72% say there was more mud-slinging […]
Slight Bush Margin in Final Days of Campaign
Summary of Findings President George W. Bush holds a slight edge over Senator John Kerry in the final days of Campaign 2004. The Pew Research Center’s final pre-election poll of 1,925 likely voters, conducted Oct. 27-30, finds Bush with a three-point edge (48% to 45% for Kerry); Ralph Nader draws 1%, and 6% are undecided. […]
Swing Voters Slow to Decide, Still Cross-Pressured
Summary of Findings With less than a week to go before the election, many swing voters have yet to commit to a candidate, but over the past month there has been some movement among this group toward Sen. John Kerry. A Pew Research Center follow-up survey with 519 swing voters who in September were […]
Candidates Battle Over First-Time Voters, Mothers
A Closer Look at Key Groups
Voters Impressed with Campaign
Summary of Findings Voters express increasingly positive opinions of the 2004 presidential campaign. Virtually all voters 96% believe the campaign is important, while a growing number also view the campaign as interesting. Fully two-thirds of voters (66%) describe the campaign as interesting, up from 50% in early September and just 35% in June. […]
Polls Apart
by Andrew Kohut in the New York Times
Race Tightens Again, Kerry’s Image Improves
Summary of Findings As the campaign heads into its final stages, the presidential race is again extremely close. The latest Pew Research Center survey of 1,307 registered voters, conducted Oct. 15-19, finds President George W. Bush and Sen. John Kerry tied at 45%-45% among registered voters, and 47%-47% among likely voters.(1) These findings represent a […]
Debate Coverage Viewed Favorably
Summary of Findings Amid an increasingly divisive presidential campaign, voters largely agree in their positive assessments of news coverage of the first presidential debate. Solid majorities of certain Bush voters (55%), certain Kerry supporters (62%), and swing voters (60%) rate the coverage of the debate as good or excellent. Voters also generally think that the […]
Kerry Wins Debate, But Little Change in Candidate Images
Summary of Findings By two-to-one, voters who watched the first presidential debate believe that John Kerry prevailed. But the widely viewed Sept. 30 showdown did not result in a sea change in opinions of the candidates. As a consequence, George W. Bush continues to have a much stronger personal image than his Democratic challenger, while […]
Young People More Engaged, More Uncertain
Debates More Important to Young Voters
Bush Margin Widens Again, Despite Vulnerabilities
Summary of Findings George W. Bush has reopened a significant lead over challenger John Kerry over the past week, even as voters express less confidence in the president on Iraq and he continues to trail Kerry on the economy. Two successive nationwide surveys of nearly 1,000 registered voters each show Bush’s margin over Kerry growing […]
When Presidential Debates Matter
Pew Research Center Commentary
Kerry Support Rebounds, Race Again Even
Introduction and Summary Voter opinion in the presidential race has seesawed dramatically in the first two weeks of September. Following a successful nominating convention, George W. Bush broke open a deadlocked contest and jumped out to a big lead over John Kerry. However, polling this past week finds that Bush’s edge over his Democratic rival […]
Public Faults Bush on Economy – 55% Say Jobs are Scarce
Summary of Findings With three months to go until the presidential election, the American public remains largely dissatisfied with economic conditions and with President Bush’s stewardship of the economy. Two-thirds rate the national economy as “only fair” or “poor,” while just one-third judge it to be “excellent” or “good.” Accordingly, Bush gets low ratings for […]
Democrats Gain Edge in Party Identification
The Democratic Party has achieved a small gain in party affiliation and holds a 33%-29% edge over the GOP in Pew surveys conducted in 2004. This represents a modest shift from the two year period following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, when the Republican Party had drawn virtually even with the Democrats. The current […]
